


The Stray

by WinterSorceress



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: F/F, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-29
Updated: 2015-09-29
Packaged: 2018-04-23 23:43:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,815
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4896802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WinterSorceress/pseuds/WinterSorceress
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>During a stormy night, Lapis Lazuli brings home a surprise guest, one that may give some of the gems more trouble than they bargained for, even Pearl, who may be just a little bit jealous.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Stray

**Author's Note:**

> I was considering not posting this one because, though I worked a week or two on it (I was very busy), my opinion of it diminished. But, hey, why not? I thought of this idea while walking to work in the rain.

“Bring it, sister!”

           Even with the rumbling thunder outside, her teammates’ antics were hard to miss. No sooner than Pearl had stepped out of her room, she was confronted with the sights and sounds of Amethyst and Jasper’s newest wrestling match. As much as it helped to keep them from getting too otherwise rambunctious, their chosen location could’ve been better.

           “Amethyst! Jasper! What’d we tell you two about wrestling in the house?” she chided before she so much as took another step. “You’re going to break something!”

           Occupying the open area between the kitchen and living room, the two rowdy gems looked up at her from the floor, somewhat surprised by her interference. For the moment, Amethyst had the orange gem in a successful headlock, despite their size difference, though her face fell in the face of Pearl’s scolding, as did her grip. All involved pouted, discouraged and disappointed, even Steven who had been watching them from atop his kitchen stool.

           “Aw man, P. Are you serious? It’s raining outside,” Amethyst protested as she released Jasper and climbed back to her feet. Jasper followed shortly after.

           Firm in her position, the slender gem crossed her arms. “Then take it to your room. In there, you can do all the rough-housing you want.”

           “Tsk, fine…” was the scoffed reply. “Come on, Jasper. Let’s go.”

           Stepping away from the temple gate, Pearl then wandered into the living room as Amethyst and Jasper, who seemed more wary of keeping the peace than irritated like her companion, marched their way to their destination. Taking in her company, she discovered Peridot on the couch, her attention engrossed in her screen as she worked away. She didn’t even look up but was already quite aware of her presence.

           “Ugh, finally. Those clods were making it really hard to concentrate,” she muttered, half to herself and half to her guest.

           “Uh, do you mind if I join you?”

           Again, the green gem’s attention hardly drifted from her current task. “Sure, why not?”

           Gracefully, Pearl took her place next to her fellow gem, sitting wordlessly for a moment. Soon enough, however, she found the silence beneath the pouring rain awkward and attempted to scrounge out a conversation starter. Discreetly, she snuck a peek at Peridot’s screen, trying to make sense of the data displayed. An unamused warning glance, though, was all it took for her to be dissuaded from that endeavor and be forced to seek something else.

           Almost desperately, she glanced around the room as Steven strolled over and jumped up on the couch next to her. “Oh, Steven!” she greeted, relieved to have someone much more willing to converse. “Have you seen Lapis by any chance?”

           The boy thought for a few seconds before he shook his head. “Not for a while. I think she went outside,” he reported. “I’m starting to get worried though.”

           That  _was_  worrying. Though Lapis was indeed a water gem, she doubted that even she would enjoy being caught out in a thunderstorm. Mildly concerned, Pearl eyed the front door, hoping that she would return any minute now, a pondering hand to her mouth.

           Her wish came true in a particularly violent crash of thunder. Ushered in by a lightning strike, that momentarily lit up the temple with its brilliance, the door swung open with a bang. For a terrifying second, Lapis lurked in the doorway almost menacingly, eyes appearing to glow, leering, in the darkness succeeding the flash.

           Steven and even Peridot yelled in fear beside her, but she was too spooked to move herself.

           “You…” the blue gem just about growled, remaining by the door. Her face was cloaked in shadows, her head low and shoulders hunched. “How dare you…”

           Pearl’s mind raced in a stare of pure panic. As close as she and Lapis had grown, even romantically, the smaller gem’s fury was not one she had ever hoped to evoke. The thought alone was a fearful one, but this left her downright petrified.

           She couldn’t even recall why she could possibly be angry with them.

           “H-how dare w-we what, dear?” the nervous gem managed to stammer out as Lapis stalked her way deeper into the house, not once meeting their wide, alarmed gazes.

           Pearl realized her hands had been hidden as well, behind her back, when she at last move them. The action was slow at first, the one responsible unsmiling. Then, everything changed, shifting in a complete one-eighty.

           “Not tell me Earth had these delightful creatures!”

           “Meow!”

           In a display of true fluidness, Lapis Lazuli’s frown transformed into a most light-hearted grin as she produced forth a drenched and mangy feline.

           Just like that, all of the stored tension and apprehension evaporated from the room. In that same moment, sounds of delight and mild wonder filled the emptiness left behind. Both Peridot and Steven jumped to their feet to greet their furry guest, obviously seconding Lapis’s adoration towards the critter, while Pearl looked on with bewilderment.

           “Whoa! Lapis, where did you find her?” Steven questioned, eyes bright. He then reached out a gentle hand, an offering of affection that was gladly accepted. “Aw, she likes me!”

           “You’re actually surprised?” Peridot retorted, arms crossed, as she remained a stubborn distance back. “What a clod…”

           She was ignored out of habit.

           “I found her hiding by the boardwalk,” Lapis explained as the brown spotted cat purred away under the boy’s administrations. “She was so frightened by the storm until I came along. She wouldn’t let me leave without her. I don’t even know what to call this creature!”

           Steven chuckled, fond of these newest residents of Earth. “Well, on Earth we’d call her a—“

           “Dude!” Amethyst exclaimed from the temple gate, her larger playmate close behind as they hurried to join the growing audience. “Nice cat!”

           “What are you two doing here? I thought you were in Amethyst’s room,” Pearl inquired, somewhat worried about how their more reckless behavior would startle the stay Lapis brought home.

           “We came to see what all the commotion was about, yo,” Amethyst explained coolly. She too, however, refrained from touching their guest and simply regarded her from several feet away, hands on her hips, having seen many cats in her thousands of years. “Why aren’t  _you_  over here with the rest of us? That’s the  _real_ question, P.”

           Pearl verbally backpedaled from her spot on the couch, especially when everyone’s attention flickered to her, no matter how brief. “Me? Well, I-I…” Regaining her composure, she steadied herself before her comrades. “Well, it’s just a cat after all. Nothing I haven’t seen before. Why are  _you_  so excited, Amethyst?”

           The purple gem only rolled her eyes. “Tsk…” she scoffed. “Whatever.”

           “Come on, guys. Be nice,” Steven mediated. “After all,  _we_  may have seen cats before but Peridot, Lapis, and Jasper haven’t.”

           “Eh, Steven does have a point,” Amethyst agreed before gaining a mischievous smile as she regarded the remaining Home World gems. “Come on, you guys. Don’t be shy. She doesn’t bite. At least I don’t think so.”

           The fact that her last statement ended up with a snicker probably did little good for their eagerness. Instead, Peridot and Jasper traded uncertain glances before stepping forward together. The latter was whom Pearl expected the most to make the first move out of the two of them, but it wasn’t in the way she expected. In a sly movement, Jasper casually moved her arm, in such a way her elbow knocked Peridot towards Lapis a few steps. Peridot yelped and caught herself before turning to leer at the one responsible.

           “What? Don’t look at me. It was an accident,” Jasper lied, putting on a mask of innocence that few believed.

           “Ugh. Whatever. Let me see the beast,” the scout grumbled as she turned to address the feline of the hour. She bent down slightly to its level to take a good look at its face and jabbed a finger its way experimentally. “Huh. I guess it  _is_  kind of pleasant to look at it, but I don’t see much else that could possibly—Hey! That is not a toy!”

           The stray obviously disagreed with her protest and only continued her attempt to bite at and steal the gem digit. Lapis, her apparent keeper, only laughed at their antics, even as the cat began to swat at Peridot’s hapless finger, much to Peridot’s dismay. Bewildered, the green gem struggled to pull her digit away from the offending creature’s jaws, having much more trouble than she originally planned.

           “L-let go of me, you…you pest!” she growled with effort. She summoned a good deal of strength for one final yank, only for the cat to release her finger at the last second, sending her back into Jasper with another yelp. “Argh…It seems I underestimated the furry beast.”

           That was enough to hook Jasper’s attention. Even as she helped her comrade back to her feet, her attention was now on the cat. Her expression was one of intrigue, as though she had discovered a worthy opponent she had not considered before. Abruptly, Pearl gained a sinking feeling in her chest and she prepared herself to intervene at any moment, leaning on the edge of her seat.

           “Underestimated it, huh? Let me see this so-called ‘mighty beast’!” Jasper declared, marching towards the water gem and her stray, who both regarded her curiously. Jasper too bent down to their level, virtually nose gem to nose with the furry critter. “Hmm…It does not flinch under my direct gaze. This small creature has a warrior’s courage, it seems. You’ll see about that.”

           “Hey! Jasper! Give her back!” Lapis cried, reaching, when her companion was snatched from her arms.

           This time, the larger gem stood at her full height, continuing to inspect their guest face to face. “Hmm…Earth creatures don’t have gems, right?” she muttered to herself. However, her pondering was cut short by a low growl that began rumbling from the cat’s chest. “Huh? What is that—Argh!”

           She didn’t even get a chance to finish her question before a swift swipe of a paw left her with one hell of a cat scratch that was drawn across her face. Effortlessly, the cat leapt away when released, and was caught again by Lapis as Jasper nursed her new wound. The feline groomed her paws calmly in her gem’s arms, as though she had not just injured a creature twenty times her size, but the said creature was not as willing to let the transgression pass so easily.

           “Lapis! Let me see that beast! No one gets away with such a cheap shot!” Jasper demanded as she rounded on them, practically seething with anger, her pride just as injured as her face.

           As expected, neither were about to stand for such an aggressive approach. With surprising ferocity, a menacing hiss was the feline’s response, bringing chills to all within earshot. It was only slightly effective, however, only serving to make Jasper backpedal for a moment, startled, before she went for her again. But the Earth critter wasn’t the only one she had to deal with.

           To everyone’s surprise, Lapis Lazuli answered with a similar sound of her own, only twice as intimidating knowing her power. That was more than enough to send their attacker cowering and Peridot, the unfortunate bystander, with her. It appeared that no one was going to lay a hand on her feline without first facing her wrath.

She had rescued her and carried her home, and she was  _hers_.

“Uh, Peridot…I think you’re a little too big for this,” Steven spoke up, eyeing the green gem now hiding behind him. He then glanced over at Amethyst, or rather the one trembling behind her. “And Jasper, I don’t even know  _where_  to begin with  _you_.”

Victorious, Lapis Lazuli tilted up her nose and marched away, finding a place next to Pearl on the couch. There, she continued to leer at her offending teammates. They trembled under her cold gaze, but were too fearful to move.

Lapis Lazuli was a gem feared by all, it seemed, or at least by Jasper and Peridot.

“What are you still doing here? Scram!”

That was all it took for Peridot and Jasper to scramble to their feet and make a beeline back to the temple gate. Those remaining could only watch, Amethyst and Steven holding back snickers, as they stumbled and tripped over their own feet all the way back to Amethyst’s room. Pearl herself stared in stunned bewilderment before turning her attention to the blue gem.

“Dang, that was fierce!” Amethyst praised excitedly, throwing her hands in the air. “You had them running scared. No one messes with your girl, eh Lapis?”

“Mhmm…” Lapis hummed as she doted over her purring feline, stroking her small head proudly. “No one’s picking on the small and innocent as long as I’m around. Isn’t that right, cutie?”

“Mreow!”

           The last of her words fell on deaf ears when it came to the pale gem. After all, she was too preoccupied with the ones prior. ‘Your girl’? Pearl thought  _she_  was her girl. It easily stirred up any insecurities she held about their relationship. Was a cat really so cute and cuddly that it was worth more of Lapis’s affection?

           “Haha, cute. It’s been fun, but I better scram too. Who knows what those chickens are up to in my room?”

She didn’t know what to do with herself. All she knew was that she was abruptly wishing she was a cat too. Maybe then she would be the one in Lapis’s arms instead of that stray.

“Whatcha pouting about, grumpy gills?”

Before she knew it, the water gem had plopped herself into her lap and was gazing up at her with an expression not unlike a feline herself, her furry friend still contently curled up in her hold.

“W-wha–? Me? I’m not pouting. Don’t be absurd!” Pearl denied, unable to hide the color that warmed her cheeks with bashfulness. “I just…I…Uh…”

Defeated, Pearl surrendered with an actual pout, puffing out her cheeks almost childishly in resignation. Her actions only made the other gem laugh and cuddle closer. She reached out a gentle hand to urge her to look at her once more.

“You’re so cute sometimes, cuter than any cat,” she almost purred, nuzzling her cheek affectionately. “So, take that silly jealousy and toss it out the window. This cat may be ‘my girl’, but you’re my ‘best and favorite girl’, and, honestly, this beast will only be staying if she wants to. You, on the other hand, are  _mine_. Think you can handle that?”

The validation was almost too much, too overwhelming, and the slender gem had to hold back automatic tears of sentimentality. Her darling Lapis always knew what to say or do to chase away any of her doubts. Sometimes, she wondered what great deed she was being rewarded for to have earned such a priceless gem as her girlfriend, because she certainly didn’t deserve her on her own as far as she was concerned.

“Aw, look at you two!” Steven gushed, coming over to see them. Catching them together like this had almost become commonplace for their youngest member, Pearl realized and felt a little sheepish. As long as it was nothing too severe she supposed. “Can I pet her, Lapis?”

“Pearl or the cat? Because I’m not so sure about the cat, but I think Pearl bites…”

“I do not!”

A cheeky raspberry was her response.

Amused, Steven laughed and blew one in return before giggling some more at his own antics. “So, you’re not going to try to keep her?” he asked, petting the feline in question.

“If she doesn’t want to stay, who am I to force her to?”

“Oh, I guess that makes sense…”

It was quiet after that, peaceful. The only sound to be heard was the purring of their guest under Steven’s loving hands as it sat in Lapis’s lap and Lapis sat in Pearl’s. And it seemed all were content with the arrangement.

“You know…this is much better…” the water gem muttered without warning. “If you wanted some attention, all you had to do was ask you know…”

Pearl chuckled fondly. “I do now…” she replied softly before she allowed her mind to wander, feeling quite at home. “By the way, dear…what was with that entrance earlier? You scared us half to death.”

Lapis Lazuli hardly stirred. “Huh? Did I?” she mused thoughtfully before smiling impishly. “I had to keep you on your toes somehow.”

Her answer would’ve surprised her if she didn’t know the water gem any better; instead, she only shook her head ruefully. “You’re lucky I love you…”

“I know…” Lapis hummed, leaning her head against her chest. “I love you too.”

“Meow.”

Yes, this was much better.


End file.
